Hunt
by Velvet Death
Summary: A dash of dark magic... Raven lost control of the dark magic Malchior taught her in a fight with Red X. Unable to leave her to die, Red X nursed her to health. Add a teaspoon of tension and a hint of attraction... [Finished]
1. Chase

Hunt

**:x:**

_Robin: I thought you said you didn't like to play the hero._

_Red X: Doesn't mean I can't. _

X

**:x:**

Raven, Beast Boy, Cyborg, and Starfire all exchanged worried looks.

The news had come in a couple of hours ago that Red X had been sighted in one of the old abandoned warehouses on the waterfront by a couple of teenagers. Robin had not been present when the chief of police contacted the Titans to tell them about the sighting; instead, he had been chasing a futile lead on Slade.

They didn't want to keep anything from their leader, but Robin had a tendency of obsessing over the criminals he needed to catch. Red X had been pushed out of his thoughts several weeks ago by reports of new activity from Slade, back from the dead, and the Titans had no intention of bringing X to his attention again. That was why they were gathered surreptitiously just outside of the Tower. If one of them could track down Red X before Robin found out, they would save both Robin and themselves a lot of grief.

Cyborg glanced up at the stormy gray clouds amassing in the evening sky. Rain was on the forecast and that meant danger—slippery roads and blinding water were not what they had hoped for. Their first area would be the warehouse where the report said Red X was seen. The second was old Chang's place where the zynothium was last found. From then on, they had only straws to grasp at.

"When will Robin return?" asked Starfire, feeling queasy. If Robin found out that they had kept a 'secret,' he would be terribly angry with them.

"He said around nine," replied Raven. "We'd better get going."

Starfire lifted up Cyborg and started off, crossing the water. A wind was picking up, whipping the waves into a frenzy and crashing them onto the rocks around Titans' Tower. The signs were ominous—this was not going to be an easy capture. Perhaps they would not capture Red X at all.

"Hey Raven?" asked Beast Boy just as the empath was about to lift from the ground.

"What?" she asked, turning slightly to regard him out of the corner of her eye.

"Uh... are you ok? You seem sort of absent-minded..."

Beast Boy's words couldn't be truer. It was only a while since Malchior had used and hurt her, and Raven was still suffering from a withdrawal. The temptation to use the dark magic he taught her was almost impossible to resist at times and it took all her willpower to keep the dark side at bay. She promised herself not to look through the book at the bottom of her trunk. She told herself her friends were enough. But the dreams told her she was wrong.

"I'm fine," she said through her teeth. "The important thing is to find Red X."

Beast Boy still looked suspicious as he followed her off the island.

**:x:**

The warehouse was old and moldy. The door creaked as they entered, making Cyborg and Beast Boy jump in fright. Raven went through the walls, giving the two an annoyed look, pulling Starfire with her. This was the perfect hiding place for Red X not just because he knew they would make a racket coming in, but also because the shadows stretching into corners and playing about the ceilings provided appropriate hiding spaces.

Raven scowled. She should have known some one like Red X would choose this kind of place. The five Titans together found it extremely difficult to subdue him. Being only four now, especially without Robin's experience and dynamic, they would find it next to impossible. Not for the first time that night, she wondered why she was even trying. Then she looked at Starfire's determined countenance and knew the answer. It was for Robin that they were doing this—for Robin's peace of mind, for Robin's contentment, for Robin's welfare... it was all for Robin.

Something above them moved, a shadow in the shadows.

Raven looked up sharply. "Did you see it?" she whispered.

Beast Boy nodded, though Cyborg and Starfire seemed confused.

"Get ready..." Raven said, wrapping her power against an old steel bar.

The shadow descended on them, body in a spread-eagle form. It kicked Cyborg around the face, blocked Beast Boy's head-on charge, deflected Starfire's starbolts, and leapt out of the way of Raven's bar to kick her in the stomach.

Raven remembered him well—the strong legs, tattered clothing, the red-tainted chest, the skull mask... it was Red X all right. This time, he had the belt. Stupid Robin didn't destroy it; he had kept it and locked it up, making it easy for Red X to come and steal it again. Robin should have known better. Red X was a master thief... he could easily penetrate the Tower security and steal the belt again.

Red X leaned close to Starfire. "Hey, cutie," he said. Raven could feel the leer underneath the mask like a disease. "What do you say you and I spend some quality time getting to know each other _better_?"

Starfire answered that question very aptly: with a fist in his face.

Cyborg prepared his cannon. "Dude, you're going down," he said, aiming it at Red X. The instant before he fired, Red X fell flat against the floor and the beam passed ahead of him. He rolled out and wrapped a X-shaped adhesive around Raven's legs. Then he used sharp X-shaped blades to cut away the iron pillars to the side of her. The ceiling above came crashing down on Raven as she tried to get the X off, crushing her with its weight.

Beast Boy lunged at Red X, this time in the form of a tyrannosaurus. Red X blocked a few of his blows, feinting and baiting Beast Boy until the green changeling ran into a particularly low iron beam. He fell to the floor, back in his original form and passed out cold. Starfire sent another volley of starbolts at Red X, who performed a somersault and deftly leap out of the way. Cyborg caught him and wrapped his large arms around Red X. "Oh, no you don't," he said, holding him.

Red X struggled for a while, looking for a way to defeat the man with superhuman strength. He grabbed onto a small crate with his legs and swung it upwards so that it met Cyborg's face. Cyborg batted it away with one arm, which allowed Red X to twist around and pop a disabling mechanism onto Cyborg's back. "Night-night," he said smugly as Cyborg dropped down, unable to move, with a curse a sailor would blush at.

Starfire came at him, swinging a beam she'd pried from the ceiling. "You will not hurt my friends any longer!" she yelled, swinging it down with astonishing speed, throwing Red X against a mountain of crates. Starfire flew over and caught his shirt as he fell. She punched him two times and flung him in the other direction, out of the window. Her eyes glowing with righteous fury, she unleashed her final shower of starbolts at him, making smoke and dust rise up into the air.

Then the haze finally cleared, Red X was not lying where he was supposed to be. Starfire looked around in bafflement and spotted Red X standing on the roof of the structure. She rushed up towards him again but just as she was about to reach eye level, he brought his knee up and landed a hit onto her stomach. Choking, she fell through the roof to land on some empty canisters, crushing the metal with her momentum. When Red X peered over the edge to see Starfire, she was lying perfectly still.

"You should have brought your little leader with you," said Red X, scoffing at the Titans. As he turned to go, a great metal rod hit him across the head and he tumbled off the roof to fall into the harbor. He came up a minute later, gasping for breath amid the rocky waves, to see Raven levitating above him.

"Did you really think I would go down that easily?" she asked. She was breathing heavily, her foot was hanging limply, and there were a number of bruises on her face, but her eyes shone with white anger.

A wave of black power crashed down onto his head, forcing him into the water again. He swallowed the salty ocean, slightly polluted, and choked in disgust. Struggling to get out, he suddenly broke the surface, rushing upwards, his clothing caught by her dark power. He was thrown this way and that in the air, making him incoherent and dizzy. Finally, he was dropped from sixty feet in the air to fall into the water again. Knowing that crashing into water at high speed could equal crashing into concrete, he pressed the button on his belt and teleported behind Raven.

"No, but I sure hoped so," he whispered venomously, cuffing her around the neck.

Raven fell from the air and rushed towards the ground, but caught herself at the last moment. Muttering spell words that he had never heard before, dark power rushed out of her mouth and eyes to trap him and slowly overwhelm him. She grinned, reminding him of the devils painted in old paintings, and suddenly he became afraid. The black power covered his mask and with a sinking feeling, he noticed that he couldn't breathe.

With the last of his strength and will, he struggled against Raven's hold and sent an X-shaped blade down to catch her shoulder. Her power suddenly receded and he panted, taking in oxygen. Something wasn't right about the witch now. She was much more powerful—as if some inner room that had been locked away was now open and the power inside was pouring through her.

Thunder cackled in the sky and a bolt of lightning flashed. Heavy rain began to pour down on them, distorting their vision.

Raven sent a beam of pure ebony power at Red X. He teleported out of the way, watching Raven destroy the top of the warehouse. He saw suddenly that she was losing herself in the power. The wise thing to do now was to run—and that was exactly what he did. The Titans can deal with their insane teammate—she was not his business.

But some part of Raven, still conscious of the task at hand, told her to follow Red X. He ran through alleyways and hid in houses, but Raven was always there, destruction in her path. She kept muttering the spell over and over and the city kept crumbling, house by house.

Finally, he used the teleportation module in his belt to escape.

Arriving in Central Park, he sighed and calmed his pounding heart. What the hell was Raven doing? It was like she didn't care about all the civilians that could get hurt on her rampage.

He didn't realize he had spoken aloud until a voice replied, "You're right, I don't."

Raven stood there, smirking, her hands glowing with power. Red X clenched his fists.

"How the hell did you know where I was?"

"The trail of zynothium ore was easy enough to sense. Besides, I can track teleportation in any and all of its forms."

Hell, he thought. Good mother of...

"What do you want from me?"

"Funny... now that I'm here, I don't know. Oh well, guess I'll just kill you anyway," she said.

Her eyes narrowed as she chanted the unfamiliar spell again, uprooting a nearby maple tree and sending it his way. Red X cut through the tree with the blades, leaping away. What was he going to do about her? He was a thief, not a killer. Opting for the safest way, he dodged another attack and got close enough to send out the X-shaped adhesive aimed for her mouth. She sliced through it with a tiny burst of her powers.

"Did you really think that could hold me?" she asked. A black staff materialized out of her power and she leaned down into battle position. "I'll enjoy killing you."

Red X frowned. What could he do? As he wasted time on that thought, Raven pressed forward and landed several hits on his knees, his chin, and his stomach. Before she could bring it down onto her head, Red X reached out and stopped the staff with the Xs on the back of his hand. "Dammit!" he said. "One chick like you shouldn't have so much power." He kicked her on her knees, bringing her down to kneel at the same level as him, and punched her across the cheek.

"Chick?" Raven laughed, cupping her cheek. She caught Red X's throat and squeezed. "Don't you dare use that revolting word on me ever again. I'm not a chick. I'm your nightmares come true."

Red X grasped at her wrist with one hand. With the other, he hit her on her breast bone, causing her to drop him and clutch at her chest, coughing and wheezing.

"Nightmares, huh?" he asked, kicking a trash can towards her. "Some nightmare you are."

She caught the trash can, lifting her hand, and pushed it towards him. "Just be glad that when you're six feet under, bastard, you won't be able to have any more nightmares like me."

He deflected the trash can only to be hit by an uprooted bush. Flying into a tree, he crumbled to the ground, struggling to stand. The battle had taken a lot out of him—Beast Boy, Starfire, and Cyborg were difficult enough, but Raven, now in her strange, crazy state? He had to end this here and now, or else suffer being ripped apart limb by limb. Taking out the blades, he waited as Raven approached, then sent them out to cut through the trunk of a tree. The tree wobbled for a bit, then toppled, crushing Raven under its branches.

Red X heard a pained moan from underneath the leaves. Then, nothing.

He sighed.

Ouch.

**:x:**

Raven awoke. Her head pounded painfully and her limbs ached. Her lips were dried and cracked and it took a while before she could distinctly make out her room. Except that it wasn't her room.

She found herself in a dimly-lit place, sparsely furnished, with horrible taste, too. Dust covered the chairs at the other side of the room, the lightbulb swung from the ceiling with only a little electrical line and the tv was ten years old. She was most definitely not in the Tower anymore. She looked at her hand to find it covered with bruises. Logic told her that her face and her legs were in the same condition. She groaned as she move herself. The mattress was hard and the fuzzy blanket did not cover her toes. Where the world was she?

Little by little, the events before played across her mind—getting the information about Red X, going to the warehouse, waging war, giving into the dark magic...

Damn.

This, then, was Red X's place. That was why there were no photographs on the walls. That was why it seemed so unused. But what the hell was she doing here? She noticed her cloak draped across the back of a chair and levitated it towards her. It was bloody and torn, but it was still her cloak. She grasped it with her hand and closed her eyes. Her muscles hurt just moving them.

Early daylight streamed through cracks in the shabby curtains. Outside, a crow called and the roar of an engine sounded. She wondered if the Titans knew where she was—she highly doubted it, of course. She also wondered if they had gotten back to the Tower in time to catch Robin and explain away their absence.

Raven coughed, her shoulders and chest shaking. Never in her life did she feel so weak and helpless as she did paralyzed on Red X's bed. She wanted to walk away, but her legs wouldn't obey her and the most she could move was her fingers, her eyes, and her neck. An appalling thought suddenly occurred to her—what if Red X had taken advantage of her?

No, she assured herself. Both she and Red X were too hurt to be able to have done it. Besides, the only sexual interest Red X had displayed was towards Starfire, not her. She was safe. That, in turn, made her wonder where Red X was. He certainly wasn't in the drabby room that he probably called home and he was much to hurt to have gone on a trip to steal other items.

The door rattled and Raven twitched. Centering her attention onto the door, she waited for it to open, wrapping her power around a chair. The door opened and Red X walked in, holding a cup in his hand. The chair flew towards him, but he blocked it and smashed it easily. "You shouldn't be exerting yourself, woman," he said, shoving the cup in her face. "You have barely healed."

Raven scowled. "I wasn't exerting myself," she said. "It was fine. I have power to spare."

"Right..." said Red X sarcastically, "that's why you can't move."

Raven, finding herself speechless, allowed him to raise her into a sitting position and press the cup to her lips. She had no choice but to down the mixture he gave her, a bitter, sour liquid that burned her throat and made her nauseous. "What is this thing?" she asked when he had forced down the last drop.

"It undos the drug paralyzing you."

It took all of Raven's will not to pound him into the creaky floor.

"You can't blame me, you see. You were the one who went crazy and started to make death threats. I paralyzed you to see if you would be the same way when you woke up. I was outside the door when you finally did, so I went and made of the cure now that I know you're not going to attempt to take my life. Jeez, woman, you've got a lot of anger in you." He sat down on one of the chairs and propped his feet up.

"Why did you help me?" asked Raven, lifting her arm to see the bandages wrapped around it.

"I'm a thief, but I still have _some_ morals," he replied nonchalantly. "I couldn't just leave you under the tree because you could have died there. No one would have found you until it was too late. So I took you with me. Oh, and just so you know, this isn't my base. It's the home of Nathan Ywalts."

Nathan Ywalts was one of the most obscene and low-handed drug dealers in Jump City. He managed to slip the Titans last year, having had a deal with Mumbo, and had disappeared from the radar ever since. To find his apartment was to find a jackpot.

"So you're one of his friends?" asked Raven suspiciously.

"Nah. I pilfer his stuff, like that antique Ming vase over there that I'm gonna take as soon as you leave," said Red X, shrugging.

"How long have you been a thief?"

"Hah! Years. How long have you been a titan?"

"One year," she replied stiffly. She did not want to go into the reasons she had brought the team together—she hated to talk about Trigon and his influence over her.

"Do you like it?"

"...most of the time," she replied, remembering Terra. "Do you like being a thief?"

"It pays well," he laughed. "Especially if I do special cases."

"Special cases?"

"They call me up and ask me to steal for them. I get tens of thousands for those jobs." Red X crossed his arms over his chest and Raven couldn't help but glance at his muscles. He was older and stronger than Robin, that was for sure, but he didn't seem much older than twenty-two. How he could fit into the costume when his physique was so much different from Robin's was beyond her.

"Why did you become a thief in the first place?" Raven asked. His talents could be used for so many other occupations instead stealing.

"What is this? 60 minutes?" asked Red X, beginning to become defensive. Apparently, he hadn't expected the conversation to carry on so long. He stood up abruptly and went to the door. "You can stay for a while longer if you want. You're still pretty weak, and if you try to capture me, I won't go easy." With that, he exited and closed the door rather forcefully.

Raven rolled her eyes and laid back onto the hard bed for some rest, despite the questions pounding into her head. Why was he being so nice to her? Why did he save her when she tried to kill him? And why was he moving with all those injuries?

**:x:**

"Where's Raven?" asked Beast Boy quietly at the breakfast table. Robin was shifting through the blue, moldy food in the fridge and it left the three at the table open for discussion.

"I thought she had come back early when I woke up," said Cyborg.

Later that night, at around ten, the three Titans returned to the Tower bruised and tired to find Robin waiting for them. They had explained away Raven's absence by saying that she had come back already and was probably cooped up in her room and that the bruises were from the movie theater—Beast Boy tripped and Cyborg fell on top and Starfire afterwards, then they were trampled by crazy fangirls rushing to see the new megastar's hit movie. Later on, they had assembled, anxiety clouding their minds, after attempting to find Raven with little success.

"She was not in her room, nor is she on the roof. I cannot find her anywhere." Starfire poked her blueberry waffle, her shoulders hunched.

"Do you think Robin will notice?" Cyborg asked, glancing over at the leader.

"Not right now. Later, duh," said Beast Boy.

Starfire bit her lip and leaned over the table. "I saw several signs of a great battle when I was watching the reporting of the news this morning. It seems there was a fight through the park of pleasurable activities and a weapon from Red X was found in the ground. Do you think that Raven could have possibly followed Red X, fought him, and then was taken by him?"

"That's probably what happened," said Beast Boy, his eyes growing wide.

"Don't worry. Our girl Raven can handle herself," said Cyborg, trying to sound reassuring.

"What are you talking about? Raven can handle herself with what?"

The Titans froze with horror.

Robin had returned.

Robin had overheard.

**:x:**

_Disclaimer: Teen Titans do not belong to me. Eh, too bad._

This is the first part of a two-part featuring the Raven/Red X relationship.

Please Review!


	2. Trust

Hunt

**:x:**

_Robin: Who are you?_

_Red X: If I wanted you to know that, would I be wearing a mask?_

X

**:x:**

"SHE WHAT?" yelled Robin, slamming his palms down onto the table.

The three other Titans shrunk away from him.

"HOW COULD YOU NOT TELL ME RED X HAS RAVEN? WHO KNOWS WHAT HE MAY HAVE DONE TO HER BY NOW? WHAT IF HE'S FORCED OUT ALL THE SECURITY CODES TO THE TOWER? WHAT IF HE'S TORTURING HER FOR HIS OWN SICK PLEASURE? WHAT IF... WHAT IF HE'S... YOU KNOW!" he continued, gesticulating wildly.

"Robin, I keep telling you, Raven isn't some kid who needs to be saved. She can take care of herself," said Cyborg, pretending to be more confident than he felt.

"It's _Red X_ we're dealing with here, don't you understand? He's a criminal!"

"He's a thief," reasoned Cyborg. "He cares about nobody but himself. If he hurts her, he'll have all of the Titans to deal with, and he's not that stupid."

"Cyborg is correct, Robin. I am sure that Raven is not harmed." Starfire looked around, urging the other two into nodding with her.

"But you told me her communicator and her tracking signal has been disabled. How can I possibly be sure that she's safe? We have to go look for her. I can't believe you kept this from me!" Robin threw up his hands, storming away.

Starfire stood from the table. "We must search for Raven, whether she is safe or not. I do not want to think of her near that... man."

Cyborg watched Robin exit the room. "Beast Boy, you know Raven's scent. We'll go to Central Park and go off from there. Robin's too angry to think right now."

Beast Boy morphed into a greyhound and whined.

"I'm sure she's fine, BB," said Cyborg. His eyes told a different story.

**:x: **

Raven flexed her fingers. Her joints ached and her head throbbed, but she could move now, which was an improvement. She could hear movement in the next room—the scrape of a chair, the rustle of paper—and she wondered about Red X's wounds. Pushing herself into a sitting position, Raven managed to move herself to the edge of the bed. The moment she rose, however, she knew that her legs weren't strong enough to support her. Her knees gave way and she fell, nearly smashing her nose against the dusty floor.

Instead of walking, Raven levitated herself upwards and phased through the door, intent on finding Red X. The other room was slightly bigger than the bedroom, filled with suspicious-looking boxes. Red X rested on a stool, busy applying salve to a wound on his wrist. Raven landed behind him into a sitting position and the resulting creak caused him to whip his head around. "What do you want?" he asked suspiciously.

Raven took his wrist, her other hand glowing blue, and healed the red welt.

Red X pulled away, staring at the unmarred skin.

"Hold out your palms," Raven instructed.

His eyes narrowed, but he obeyed, seeing what she did to his wrist.

Raven placed her palms on his and closed her eyes, focusing her power. It gathered from the scatterings throughout her body and flowed towards her hands, transferring to Red X. A bluish glow enveloped both of them as her power ran through his body, healing his bruises and cuts. At the same time, she self-healed, closing the wound on her shoulder. When she was finished, she opened her eyes to find Red X watching her intently.

For some unfathomable reason, she blushed.

"Why did you help me?" he asked, his voice emotionless.

"Because you helped me. I'm a superhero. I have to return favors."

"Don't you get tired of it?" he asked. "You're always bound to the person who helped you, you always have duties... you can't ever live the way you want to."

"This is the way I want to live," Raven replied, turning her face away. "My powers can be used for good and evil.. I prefer them used for good."

"What is good?" asked Red X, his eyes not leaving her face. "Who's to say what is good and what is bad? I live my life as a thief, and I still see the same sunsets and shooting stars. Maybe my life is sweeter than yours will ever be. Every day I live, I steal and I take pride in my craft. Every day I see the sun sink, I know that I haven't been caught, that I'm the best there is."

"Aren't you the model of humility?" Raven asked dryly, her eyebrow quirking. Inwardly, her emotions were quarrelling. Who was to say what was good and what was bad? She could live her life without obligations to the public and still be satisfied. But she was never going to admit to Red X that she found his reasoning very attractive.

He seemed to know what she was thinking anyway, because he started to chuckle. "It seems you aren't as much of a superhero as you think," he said.

She found that she liked the sound of his laughter—his real, genuine laughter. "I'm more of a superhero than you are. I should be capturing you right now, you know. Capturing you and taking you to the rest of the Titans." She smirked, watching his smooth, ivory mask.

"Instead, you healed my wounds and started to argue about heroism and ethics with me."

Raven sighed, the smile falling away. He was right—she didn't feel much like a superhero... at least, not anymore. "I told you, I healed you because I had to."

"No, you didn't. If you were Bird-Boy, you would have just healed yourself and gone after me anyway." His voice had an edge of mirth. "I'm just a no-good criminal to him."

"...I'm not Robin," she said simply. She felt like adding, "and you are a no-good criminal," but thought better of it.

"No, you're not," he replied softly. She met his eyes and her heart started to beat rapidly. Then she remembered the last time she fell for anyone and ducked her head, not wanting him to see the uncertainty in her eyes. Where was Stoic Raven when she needed her?

Red X regarded her for a moment. "I think you should go," he said coolly, rising to his feet.

Raven nodded, not daring to look at him. Without saying goodbye, she phased phased through the wall of the apartment, landing in the hall. For a moment, she looked at the front door, with its flaking paint and fading number. 7B. Then, almost resignedly, she started for the staircase and her routine life of heroism.

**:x:**

"Dude, we've searched all the underground tunnels, abandoned warehouses, and criminal bases we know about. Red X didn't go to any of them last night," said Cyborg into the telecommunicator built into his arm.

"I checked Central Park. Her scent is everywhere, but when I get out, I lose it two blocks away. It's as if they just disappeared into thin air or something," said Beast Boy, standing where he had lost the scent. "I found her communicator. It's been smashed up."

"I have gone to check Raven's favorite 'hanging out' places and she is not there," said Starfire, flying above the city, her hair streaming behind her.

"Dammit," they heard Robin swear over their communicators. "Where is she?"

**:x:**

Standing behind him at the dock, Raven wondered how much she should tell him. Robin hadn't noticed her yet, of course, being lost in his own thoughts. Raven remembered how Red X was... selfish, conceited, yet at the same time, strangely charming. She knew that if she told Robin about him now, they would get to the apartment fast enough to capture him. Somehow, that idea didn't appeal to her.

"Hello, Robin," said Raven, sitting down next to him.

"Raven!" he exclaimed, his mask stretched wide. "We've been looking all over for you! Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," Raven replied, watching the waves wash up against the pillars supporting the dock.

"Where's Red X?" demanded Robin. "Why did you go off without telling me?"

"We knew you had been searching for Slade," she replied, opting not to answer the first question. "Telling you Red X was in Jump City would just overstress you."

"But he was my responsibility! It's my problem. I created Red X and I have to deal with it!" Robin's face was contorted in shame. "Even if he helped me once, it is my duty to bring him to justice." Raven noticed how he used 'me' and 'my' with irritation building inside of her.

"Robin, he isn't just your concern," she said, frowning. "He helped _us_ out, not just you. He's our duty, not just yours. Try not to be so self-centered—you may think it's the right thing to do, taking all that responsibility on your _capable_ shoulders, but you are not the Teen Titans. _We_ are. If you think doing all the work by yourself is helping us, then you're assuming we're helpless infants who aren't the kind of seasoned warrior you are."

Robin was silent for a long time.

"How did you get back?"

Raven didn't answer.

"You know where he is, don't you?"

She turned away.

"Take me!"

She closed her eyes.

"As your leader, I must say that it is in everyone's best interest that you take me to where he is."

Not in_ his_ best interest, Raven thought, but she got up and brushed herself off. "Let's find the others first."

**:x:**

Robin had waited reluctantly for everyone to gather before they set off for the crumbling apartment building that Nathan Ywatt's base was located. They entered to find it abandoned and depleted of valuable pieces of foreign art.

Robin had begun his investigation immediately, checking cabinets and opening drawers, while Beast Boy looked about the building for clues and Cyborg analyzed a footprint they had found. Starfire seemed to be the only one perceptive of Raven's unusually unenthusiastic state.

"What is wrong, Raven?" she asked quietly, looking down at the other girl.

Raven's eyes fastened to the place she and Red X had sat together only half an hour before. "Nothing," she replied. "Nothing at all."

"There he is!" yelled Beast Boy, pointing to a fleeing figure in black and gray.

Raven's heart sank as Robin shouted the customary, "Titans, go!", and they took off after the figure. She kept praying that he would teleport off, but Red X seemed determined to lead them on a chase. They never could get within striking distance, though—they could only see the swish of a cape around a corner or the blur of movement in front of them.

Robin got close to Red X several times to make out the white of his mask. But just as he was about to attack, Red X would distract him by toppling a billboard or sending blades to land right in front of his feet. The others were only able to follow half a pace behind—it was a dance between Robin and X, a furious tango that had no conclusion.

Then, as suddenly as it started, the chase ended. Red X just disappeared around as he turned a corner, leaving Robin to brood over his whereabouts.

Raven didn't know whether to be happy or disappointed. He was gone—but the main objective of the chase was to vex Robin, with nothing to do with her. Did he even care at all?

**:x:**

There came soft knocking on her door. "Raven?" asked Starfire. "Raven, I would like to converse with you."

With a soft _whoosh_, the door slid open a crack and Raven's eye peeped out. "Go away, Starfire. I'm busy."

As she was about to close the door, Starfire slid her foot into the crack, effectively gaining Raven's attention once more. "Friend Raven, what I would like to speak to you about is very important and I suggest you let me in, or I will bring it up during the meal."

Starfire was using blackmail.

Raven felt her eyebrows rise in surprise. She relented, letting Starfire enter her room.

Dozens of old books with yellowing pages and musty smells were spread out on the floor. There were Shakespearean sonnets, Irish legends, Greek myths, Indian tales... all of them spoke of love and confusion. Fearing Starfire would see, Raven closed all of the books, but Starfire picked one up before she could stop her.

"_He drew a circle that shut me out—_

_Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout._

_But Love and I had the wit to win:_

_We drew a circle that took him in...."_

Starfire looked up. "This is the reason, is it not?" she questioned. "'Love and I'... 'shut me out'... Raven, do you 'love' him? Is it possible that in so short a time, you can begin to love an enemy?"

"I... I... I don't know," Raven admitted, suddenly feeling weak and defenseless. "I really... I don't think I think of him as an enemy anymore, Starfire," she said. "I try to, but it doesn't feel that way. I don't know what to feel or think or do. I just know that I am worried about him and I don't want Robin to catch him."

"Tell me what happened, Raven. From the beginning, if you would."

"...Since Malchior betrayed me, I've been having dreams where the magic he taught me wound about my arms like snakes and forced me to open the book and release him. Then the magic would swallow me whole until I was an incarnation of dark magic. That day, when we fought Red X... I lost control of the dark magic inside me and I went on a rampage. Red X finally defeated me and nursed my wounds because he didn't want me to die. I... I don't think he's evil. Just immoral and arrogant."

Starfire watched her closely.

"Don't tell them," Raven asked. "Please don't tell them."

Starfire smiled reassuringly. "I will not betray your confidence," she replied. "From what you have told me, I think I understand better of Red X now. But be careful, Raven. He is, as you have pointed out, immoral. He might not comprehend love such as yours."

"I don't think so, either..." Raven said.

**:x:**

A shadow stood over Raven, watching her sleep. It wanted to touch her face, but it remembered its duty and pressed a blindfold to her eyes. Slinging her over its shoulder, it climbed out the window and snuck away in the night.

**:x:**

Raven groaned. Her wrists, already tender, were being chaffed. She opened her eyes, expecting to see the familiar swirling shadows that flowed on her ceiling, only to find complete darkness—someone had blindfolded her. Her hands strained against the metal bindings, but they wouldn't come loose. Nor did the clamps on her ankles. She heightened her sense of hearing, finding that whoever had taken her was pacing only a few meters away.

Raven frowned as the person turned, his clothing rustling.

"So you're awake," he said.

Shock resonated through her mind. It was Red X standing there—she recognized the timbre of his voice. Animosity thickened the atmosphere of the room.

Raven tried to pry off the blindfold, but it wouldn't come off. "Don't bother," said Red X, coming to stand next to where she sat. "The adhesive on the blindfold is the same kind used for taping up your mouth. You'll have to rip it off, and with your hands in the state they're in, there's no way you can see where I stay."

"Why?" Raven asked, lifting her face to where his voice came from.

"Why?" he asked, dry humor seeping into his intonation. "Why do you think, Raven? I gave you the location of Ywatt's apartment and from what happened between us, I expected you to bring them later on. Before I had time to gather anything, your car pulled up and all of the Titans came. You wanted to capture me all along—you knew you couldn't defeat me so as soon as you saw your friends , you took them to the apartment."

"I thought you'd be gone by then."

"You're just like every other righteous brat. You can't see what it feels like to be me."

"Well you can't see what it feels like to be me!" she retorted. "I didn't want to take them back, but Robin is the leader—and my friend—and I can't just lie to him! I'm not that kind of a person!"

"I don't know what kind of person you are, if not a superhero."

"I am not just a superhero. I am a person, with feelings and emotions and attachments. I can't betray my friends."

"And yet you betrayed me."

The silence between them grew, becoming almost tangible.

"You... you thought of me as a friend?" she whispered, something stirring in her chest.

"Not anymore." His stony tone made her heart sink.

"You thought I betrayed your trust," Raven said, mostly to calm her thoughts. "You trusted me."

"And I was a fool for it, too."

The hurt, masked by a sneering indifference... how often she had employed the same method to hide herself. "You think I can trust you, Red X?" she asked quietly. "You think I can trust you when you won't even show me your face?" She realized she was trembling.

"I won't show you my face. You'll just take the information back to your friends and betray me again."

"Why did you take me here? Why go to the trouble of abducting me and tying me up?"

"They'll find your room empty and start to worry again," he said, this time a nasty edge to his voice. "I'm doing this to torment them."

"...I told Starfire about you," she said.

He was uncomfortable, she realized. He stirred from his position and turned away. "So what did the she say?"

"She understood. She won't tell."

"She understood? She understood what?" A sudden stirring of the air brushed her face, meaning Red X had spun around and was now facing her. "That you pretended to understand me and befriend me and then turned against me like I was nothing?"

"She understood that, despite all that I stand for, I cared about you," Raven shot back, lacing her words with venom. "She understood that I was hurt when you wouldn't even look at me, that I liked you."

"Liar," he replied.

"How do you know? You don't know me!"

Somehow, Raven got the feeling that the real reason he took her was to prove to himself he didn't feel for her. At least, that's what she hoped his motives were. "Despite what happened, we don't know each other very well. We're two enemies unable to determine if the other means well or not, unable to trust," she said, closing her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" He seemed mildly surprised.

"For hurting you."

"You didn't hurt me," he said defensively.

"And I'm sorry that we can't... we can't seem to give our trust to each other."

Again, the long silence. Then, Raven heard some movements and something hit the floor. His fingers gripped hers and pulled her hands upwards. Her fingers met his skin, she realized that he didn't have his mask on. His other hand began to lift away the blindfold.

"No," said Raven, pulling her face away.

"Why?" he asked angrily. "I trust you."

"But I don't. I told you before, I have to be a hero. If I see your face, I'll have to tell my friends and then we'll identify you and pretty soon, you'll be locked away. I don't want that." Raven knew she was pleading, but somehow, she didn't really care. "Don't make me look at you."

"Do you really think I'm that ugly?" he asked incredulously, but his voice began to brighten considerably.

"Yes," she replied sarcastically. "That's the reason you wear a mask."

She could feel his smile, and grinned in reply.

He pressed a kiss to her lips. She was unaccustomed to the strange feeling of another's lips on hers, and in surprise, something behind them blew up, the shards clinking against the wall. He pulled away, looked over her shoulder, and groaned. "That's ten thousand dollars down the drain," he said, but there was mirth underneath the words.

She chuckled.

"Trust," he murmured as he leaned down again. "Trust."

**:x:**

When the blindfold finally came off, she found herself blinking in the afternoon sun, on a side street near the park . Red X watched her, sitting a couple of feet away on a black motorbike, painted with red Xs. "You're free to go back to your friends," he said, his tone once again unreadable.

Raven at a loss for words. There were no partings that could communicate the twisted mess that her emotions were caught in. He seemed to understand, as he shrugged. She nodded, unable to say goodbye, and started off, her back to him.

The engine of the motorcycle roared to life. The smell of exhaust stifled her for a moment. When the smoke cleared, she looked over her shoulder to find him gone.

She gave the tiniest smile.

"Raven!" yelled Beast Boy, running towards her. "Where have you been?"

She looked surprisingly sage when she turned her violet gaze on Beast Boy.

"With a friend."

**:x:**

The poem: Not mine. By Edwin Markham, called 'Outwitted.'

Disclaimer: Teen Titans belong to not me.

What was to be a study of enemy love—Romeo and Juliet, Draco and Hermione—turned into a study of trust and friendship. How did that happen???

Ugh. Red X is very out of character... but then again, we don't know much about him, so we can pretend that is his character. XD. Raven is also pretty out of character. Let's just say that love does things to people.

_laughter._

Note: There came soft knocking on the door is a spoof of 'there came soft rains.'


	3. Epilogue

Hunt

**:x:**

_Red X: Just looking out for number one._

X

**:x:**

_Note: There will be fondling… so those who don't really like that, just skip over the paragraphs with the kissing and stroking. … Eh, actually, most of it is fondling. Nothing serious, though, so don't worry __too much about your innocence._

**:x:**

Raven Roth smoothed down the front of her satin dress self-consciously. Though she wore a polite smile, in her head she was stabbing Robin again and again. It was his fault she was standing along the wall of a vast ballroom in a stranger's mansion, wearing _pumps_ and being completely bored. Sure, the Titans must maintain a good public image so people would not hate them, but did she _have_ to come to these moronic parties?

The majority of those attending were the rich and famous. Ladies paraded around in bright, bejeweled dresses with so many diamonds hanging from their necks, it was a wonder they didn't walk around with their chins touching their chests all the time. Old men were the primary male occupants of the room—ten middle-aged men had come to hit on her in one night, only to go away thankful what made them male was still present—a harassed Raven was a force to be reckoned with.

After the last gray-haired millionaire had pressed his lips on her hand—Starfire was right to recommend gloves—Raven threw him across the room and earned a glower from Robin (PR!) and suppressed titters from the ladies, who were now looking over at her every once in a while and bursting into more fits of laughter.

Cyborg received dance invitations after every dance finished—the women were all interested in a man with muscles, cybernetic or no. Beast Boy amused himself with two young girls in the corner, practicing corny lines on them. Not surprisingly, they were both blonde. Starfire and Robin spun around the room, oblivious to everyone (including the people whose toes they stomped on) but each other.

Raven, unfortunate, lonely, bored-to-death Raven, was left to herself.

A group of men walked by and nodded to her. She gave another tiny smile, one of those cold hellos-and-goodbyes-at-the-same-time smiles.

She couldn't believe she was actually in a gown. It was a dark maroon shade, with white trim at the bottom of the skirt and a low, sloping back. The spaghetti-straps were little burgundy braids intertwined with white thread. She wore a single ring with a small red stone on her left pointer finger and kept her chakra on her forehead, donning high-heeled maroon shoes, shoes that not only pinched her toes but also limited her ability to run. Robin had assured her that there would be no need for crime fighting in the middle of a gorgeous party like this (gorgeous? What kind of straight guy said gorgeous?), but Raven was not reassured.

And it seemed she was right. A hint of black among the pastel skirts of a group of chattering women caught her attention. Then, a little further away, a scrap of tattered cloth, a kind of cloth she knew well.

Her eyes widened. _You've got to be kidding._

But, alas, the gods above were not, for a gloved hand, observed only by Raven, unclasped a necklace from the neck of an inebriated woman and slipped away.

Raven started moving immediately, her instincts kicking in. She needed to get across the room to catch him, but first she had to make her way past dozens of dancing couples and some disaffected gentlemen to where Red X disappeared. She found herself looking down a corridor, the light fading from the brightness of the ballroom to pitch black. The hint of a moving shoe in a patch of light alerted her, and she started off again, taking flight so her footsteps would not mask Red X's. Besides, how fast would she go, running in those dratted pumps of hers?

After a couple of minutes, the footsteps stopped. Raven panicked, speeding up to see where he could have gone—not that she could see anything in the dark, anyway. It was this way that she collided head on with a hard body. Arms went around her shoulders, pressing her against him as they fell onto the ground from her momentum.

"Hello, beautiful," he purred into her ear.

She was torn between laughing and growling. In the end, she settled on an annoyed, "huh."

"Did you miss me?"

"As much as I miss sour milk."

"Ouch. And I thought I was more of a rotten apple kinda guy."

Despite herself, Raven grinned. "Don't think that one kiss changed anything between us," she said, though she was trembling at being held so close to him. He had taken off his mask, and now his chin was pressed against her forehead.

"Then how about another?" One of his hands lifted her chin and he kissed her soundly, trailing his tongue along her bottom lip before he pulled away.

"That doesn't change anything, either," she said in a squeak. She had a hold on her emotions, however precarious a hold it was, so nothing shattered or imploded. She did not need her teammates coming to look for her while she was in this… _embrace_ with an enemy.

His hand moved from her chin to her back, his fingers stroking it gently. "I like this new change of costume," he whispered. "You look good in red."

Raven pulled herself from his arms and pressed a hand at his throat. "Do you think I'll wear this everyday, just for you, my one and only love?" she said, dipping each of her words in liquid sarcasm. "Now, hand over that necklace you stole, and everything else you pilfered."

"But you do admit you love me," he teased.

"Necklace," she said again, blushing fiercely.

"That's alright. I'm interested in you for now, too."

"For now?" Raven asked incredulously, fighting the urge to give him a good whack about the head.

Suddenly, his hands came up to wrap around her arm and he flung her back down the corridor. Raven soared, but caught herself before crashing down—she didn't want to rumple the dress. As she set herself back onto solid ground, arms came around her waist and she was hoisted onto a shoulder. "Of course for now. Do you think I'm the kind of guy who settles down? Now… to accomplish what I should have a long time ago."

A door opened and closed, after which Raven was thrown onto a bed.

"We do need to consummate our love, don't you think?"

Raven could not deny that the idea appealed to her slightly, but eighty percent of the other part of her being was screaming, NO! Not like this! Raven stood up, and made for the direction where she was thrown. Again, she bumped into Red X, who pinned her arms at her side and moved her to the bed again. "Naughty, naughty," his said, and kneeled down with his legs on either side of hers. "Don't try to run. This may be the last time a man gets Raven Roth in bed. After this, I'll be torn limb from limb, I just know it."

"Don't joke about your death," Raven shot back.

There was a momentary pause, and then he moved off of her. The mattress sunk beside her, and she could see a faint outline of a body next to her. "You really can't take a joke, can you?" he asked, one hand coming up to rub at his temples.

"What girl wants to be raped, by the guy she likes or not?" Raven asked. She made no move to get up, though, because she _liked_ the sensation of Red X lying besides her.

"Raped?" he said, then laughed.

Raven scowled, but then changed her expression when his fingers wound with hers tenderly. She knew he wasn't going to say he was sorry, that he had gone too far. It just wasn't his style. She didn't really mind, though, because that was how he was. She could feel his apology in the way his thumb rubbed hers.

They laid there in comfortable silence for a long time, enjoying the feel of each other by their side.

Then, Raven leaned over and kissed him. It was hard kissing someone in the dark, and she missed him the first time and got his nose, but then found his lips at last. His hand found their way on her hip, and his fingers progressed the curve of her posterior. When he found it, something exploded outside the room, resulting in the screams of many.

"Oh, for Azar's sake," she muttered, pulling away from under Red X. "Give me the necklace and go. My friends will come looking for me now."

Red X placed a finger on her lips. "Shush. Not yet." He pulled her into a closet in the room and set her on his lap, planting a kiss on her neck. Starfire broke in a moment later, called 'Raven,' looked around, and then left.

Outside, they could hear calls of "Raven! Raven!" and "Yo! Rae!"

Raven pressed her face between X's shoulder and neck, taking in a deep breath of his scent. Something heavy clinked around her neck, but she didn't really pay attention to it.

After planting a couple of kisses on her neck and down her shoulder, Red X pulled her out of the closet and whispered something in her ear.

He was celebrating the six-month anniversary of their first kiss.

Raven was surprised, but knew she shouldn't be. It was just like her to forget something like _that_ over the annoyance of the night. As he backed away, Raven touched her neck and found a chain now hanging there. It was the pendant he had stolen before. Heh. Who would have known that Red X had a _romantic_ side?

His belt clicked once, and the faint outline of Red X's body faded into the dark of the rest of the room. Raven shook her head as she exited, still rather unconvinced what just happened, just happened.

She encountered her friends, gathered around a group of reporters, and held out the pendant Red X had given her. "There was a thief here," she announced, knowing her rumpled appearance would give the illusion of a battle. "He had almost stolen this necklace. I was able to stop him and obtain the goods but he, unfortunately, got away."

Declining any questions, and returning the necklace to its startled, half-awake mistress, she exited the party and stood by the T-Car. Cyborg eventually came out, a quizzical expression painted on his face.

"Don't ask," she said, shaking her head.

"'Kay. Wanna get back to the Tower?"

"No. I'll stay here. You go dance."

Cyborg shrugged. "It's not like there's anyone I really want to dance with. You ok?"

"Yeah."

"...Red X was here, wasn't he?"

"What?"

Raven stared up at Cyborg, color rising to her cheeks. "What would make you think that?"

"The fact that he came up to me a couple minutes ago and told me to give you this..." said Cyborg, frowning. "I don't approve of whatever's happening between you and him, and don't tell me nothing's happening. But I won't tell. I didn't read it. Go ahead."

He handed her a note, folded twice, on a small notecard. X's writing was a thin script, edging on a messy scrawl. Raven read his message three times in succession, ignoring the pain flowering in her chest, and at last ripped the note to shreds.

Cyborg took her hand and led her to a small bench, where she sat down and stared at the flowers.

"It's over."

"Huh?"

"The note. It's over."

Cyborg took a seat next to her and placed his hand on her back in a comforting gesture.

"I'm fine. I knew it wouldn't work out, anyway."

Cyborg struggled for words, and at last settled for nodding with a sympathetic expression.

Raven smiled sardonically. She really should have expected it.

**.x. **

_I have a girlfriend._

_We can't go on._

_I'm leaving._

_Goodbye, beautiful. _

_X_

**.x. **

And there. The epilogue. Finally. After months of not updating (sorry...), I have finished Hunt. Done. Forever. Yeah. Thanks for all the reviews!

_Disclaimer: Teen Titans, not mine, no copyright infringement intended, etc._


End file.
